The Rescuers Go Fourth
by GreenWallsOfArt
Summary: Bernard and Bianca take a mission to an isolated Indiana lakeshore town to rescue a small girl, in time before the Fourth of July celebrations.
1. Emergency Meeting

Early July in New York is sweltering, but it doesn't stop the city from preparing for the grandest celebration of the summer. Times Square blooms with red, white, and blue, flags billowing from most rooftops and apartment windows. Streamers hang from windows, and the handlebars of children's bicycles, flowing with absolute excitement and anticipation for the biggest event of the month.

Truly, everyone is busy—especially those that live among the New Yorkers in the most obscure of places.

In Grand Central Station, a suitcase pops open. And from out between the flaps, a little brown mouse in a quaint blue cap and carrying a suitcase, hops to the ground, making his way between the crowds waiting to board a train. From down a banister on a nearby staircase, another mouse, carrying a jacket under his arm, scurries past.

From all over the station, mice start to make their way out of hiding. They move intelligently, between people's feet, under crevices in the walls, and the cover of nightfall. Each of them has a long journey ahead of them, to reach the United Nations building. But when they do arrive there, it's a simple ride down below to the basement.

Out of sight from the humans, the mice stride single file down a pipe until they reach an upside-down suitcase. It's lit up from inside by a candle, decorated with several shelves, drawers, and match boxes that serve as seats to all the mice in attendance. Quickly, they file in, not speaking much to each other, except to ask one thing of one another: why are they here?

In other words, what sort of trouble will they need to answer to, anywhere in the world?

Once everyone is seated, a rotund mouse with a monocle walks up to an empty thread spool, rapping a gavel on it. He raps thrice, and the room quiets down.

"Order, order!" he shouts. "Thank you—this emergency meeting of the international Rescue Aid Society is now in session!" He looks around at the mice present and, feeling satisfied with the state of the room, puts down his gavel. "Now, I think you all know why we are here. It has come to the RAS Mouse Scouts' attention that someone is in distress. Therefore, it is up to us to choose a pair of competent delegates, and answer this call for help without fail."

This was met with a round of applause, and a few cheers from the mice in the crowd. At the mouse's order, who is the Chairman of the Rescue Aid Society, the mice all put their hands on their hearts, and pledge their allegiance to the RAS with their anthem.

At the closing of their anthem, the Chairman raps his gavel again twice on the podium. "Fortunately now, delegates, this situation is nothing that we haven't dealt with before," he continues. "There has been a distress call from a little girl in Indiana- inside a little town called Miles Beach. She has been under the care of some abusive parents, which our Indiana Mouse Scouts have recently discovered."

The room breaks out into whispers of surprise, and discussion over which agents of the RAS could go on this mission, although they all already have an idea about who will carry it out. Indeed, the Chairman puts his hands proudly on his suit collar, and grins.

"Would any delegates like to make a nomination for this mission's agents?" the Chairman asks the room.

Instantly, the entire room raises their hands. The Chairman points to the mouse representing Canada.

"I nominate Mister Bernard of the U.S., and Miss Bianca of Hungary," he states.

"Does anyone second the nomination?" the Chairman asks.

Once again, the entire room raises their hands.

The Chairman smiles again, turning the gleeful expression to all the room. "Very good, delegates. Will Bernard and Bianca please rise?"

At this call, two mice sitting beside each other in the seats stand up. One of them is wearing a bright red sweater, and a brown hat is perched between his white-grey ears. And the other is an elegant white mouse with a lavender scarf wrapped around her neck, and a furry hat of the same color sitting on her head. She looks more than excited to be nominated for this mission, while the mouse beside her looks a little tentative.

"Mister Bernard, Miss Bianca," the Chairman says, "will you please come forth to the podium?"

The two mice cross to the aisle nearest their seats, and step down to the podium next to the Chairman. Bianca takes the head of the podium, and raises her hands to get the attention of the applauding audience, as Bernard steps up beside her with the same unsure expression.

"Delegates of the RAS," Bianca says in her confident, elegant voice, "as the top two agents of this delegation, my partner, Bernard, and I, would be delighted to accept this mission to Indiana."

The room erupts in applause again, as Bernard and Bianca both turn their attention to the Chairman, who shakes both their paws in congratulations.

"Good show," the Chairman says gladly. "Now, it is my suggestion that you fly out to Indiana as soon as you can book a flight. Bring plenty of water and protection, too. It will be the Fourth of July in a few days, so keep a sharp eye out when you go out in human public."

"It will be no trouble at all," Bianca says to the Chairman. "It is our job to help this little girl to safety. I can promise nothing will happen."

"Not while I'm around with you," Bernard states.

Bianca laughs, as she takes Bernard's paw, kissing him on the cheek. "Absolutely, darling," she says with a sweet smile.

The Chairman gently moves the two mice along the platform towards the exit. "Yes, yes, that will do," he says fussily. "Good luck to you both, and have a happy Fourth of July."

Bernard and Bianca move along quickly enough that they don't reply to the Chairman's remark. It is time to move out!


	2. Meet Crispin

Promptly after they exit the United Nations building, Bernard and Bianca return to their home to pack their things for this mission. It isn't too far a journey there—it's just a straight walk down the street to a weathered old hole under an apartment building, hidden by an old flap of black felt glued to the wood.

Bianca enters the hole first, removing her hat, and hooking it onto a splinter next to the doorway. Bernard secures the felt flap closed behind him, and he pulls the switch on a flashlight in the center of the room. A yellow beam lighting up the ceiling illuminates their home: two matchbox beds in the corner, with collections of newspaper clippings piled together in another. Adjacent to the beds, fun-sized candy bars and snack bags make up their kitchen, with boxes of mouse-sized clothing folded neatly by the door.

Breathing deeply, but very daintily, Bianca lays against the sheets on her bed. "I don't suppose I will ever get used to walking such a distance," she says to Bernard, as he is hanging his hat and coat on another splinter on the wall. "But, now we have a new assignment. Oh, won't it be exciting, Bernard? To travel again to a new place, have some new adventures together?"

Bernard helps himself to a piece of a potato chip, and comes to sit down on his own bed. "Well…" he begins, not really knowing where to start on going on a new and perilous journey with his wife. "I…I d-don't think I've ever been to Indiana before."

"Neither have I," says Bianca. "But it sounds just fascinating. Actually, I haven't seen much of the country before except for New York. It truly helps to be a part of the Rescue Aid Society, so that we can travel the world."

"As long as we can take the train," Bernard remarks.

Bianca giggles, sitting back up on her bed. "We will see, Bernard," she says, starting to get up again. "For now, we should start to pack our things. I don't think a flight or a train will keep waiting for us."

With a sigh, Bernard finishes his piece of potato chip, and also stands to retrieve a suitcase from beside his bed. He follows Bianca to the corner where their clothes are kept, and starts to fill his bag quickly. And by the time he and Bianca close up their home, it has only been ten minutes.

…

The two mice make their way to the nearest bus station, careful to select one that will take them to the airport, where they will find their next mode of transportation to Indiana. They ride the bus in the front, hidden behind a trash can in front of the first seat, sitting on their suitcases to avoid the grimy, gum-covered floors. But finally, they can see the bright, shining lights glaring on the giant steel building from nearby, and they know they have reached their destination.

Together, Bernard and Bianca jump from the steps, and walk down the long hallways, in between rolling suitcases and striding plane-goers. They ride a few escalators, and slide down a few banisters, until they reach the helicopter pads. Just across them, they can see a tiny cabin with a sign shaped like an albatross above it. Quickly, they climb the gangplank leading up to the cabin, and enter through the doorway.

The cabin is dark when they first come inside, so Bernard and Bianca expect for some lights to come on when they enter. But minutes have passed, and no one has come to greet them. In the dark, Bernard squints to read the chalkboard stationed next to a clock on the wall. The once-scribbled board is swiped clean, without any indication of when the next flight will be departing.

"Bianca," Bernard starts nervously. "Maybe we should have waited until morning to come here."

"Perhaps Wilbur is out for the night," Bianca guesses. "It's all right, Bernard. We can wait here, if we must."

"But what if he doesn't come back here?" Bernard wants to know. "Oh, well. Then I guess we can go to the train station instead."

"Nonsense," says Bianca. "Someone will be here soon. I'm sure of it."

Bernard turns to observe the darkened space around them, and his eye caught on something that made him drop his suitcase, and sputter out a gasp.

"What is it?" Bianca asks, turning to her husband.

"Bianca, w-w-what is th-that?" says Bernard, pointing into the darkness. A speck of moonlight shines through the window of the cabin, and some brown-and-white feathers glint against the light. They stir gently, and when Bernard and Bianca listen carefully, they can now hear some steady breathing coming from that body of feathers.

Bianca shakes her head as she steps closer to the massive body in front of them. "I do not think it's an albatross, like Orville or Wilbur," she notes. "The feathers are brown and white. And…he has a very, very long beak."

Bernard comes close behind Bianca, craning his neck to observe this strange bird. What would a creature like this be doing in the headquarters for a flying service conducted all by albatrosses? Bianca said it didn't look like one, so what in the world could it be?

Gently, Bianca taps her paws on the bird's coat. "Hello? Sir? Mr. Bird?" she says in a hushed whisper. "Are you awake?"

Bernard waits silently as Bianca continues to observe this bird, until suddenly, he notices the thing stir, stretching itself across the entire expanse of cabin. It looks like something from another world, being half in the moonlight and half in the darkness, especially when it raises its wings like a majestic eagle.

"Wow!" Bernard remarks, half in wonder and in fright.

Bianca steps back cautiously, but halts when the bird stops stretching. It then opens its mouth in a yawn, blinking its eyes a few times to take note of its surroundings.

"Hello?" Bianca says again.

"Hello?" the bird repeats in the same hushed voice as Bianca. "Who is saying 'hello'?"

"Down here, mister," Bianca answers. "Please excuse the interruption, but we would like to ask you something."

The bird perks its head up, almost hitting Bianca. She dives out of the way, as Bernard rushes to help her back up, giving the bird in the shadows an appalled frown.

"Where's Wilbur?" asks Bernard firmly. "We need to charter a flight."

"Wilbur?" asks the bird. "Wilbur? Oh…yes, I know who you're talking about. He and his brother, Orville. They always ran this place, but, to the misfortune of everyone around here, they both seemed to have disappeared without a trace. I'm sorry, little mice, but there's no one to speak of them."

"Then what are you doing in here?" Bernard continues. "This place belongs to Orville and Wilbur."

"Peace, peace," said the bird. "I know that. Everyone knows that. I just thought perhaps I would take the opportunity to keep their headquarters safe while they were away. I'm a good friend of them, in point of fact. But never fear—I'm also an able-bodied flyer, and a well-learned bird in directions, if that makes you feel any better."

"What is your name, mister?" asks Bianca.

Carefully, the bird starts to step from out of the black, flexing his wings and maneuvering his beak to not hit anything, especially Bianca, finally having immersed himself in the silver light. Bernard and Bianca gaze up at him, but once more, Bianca is the first to approach him.

"My name, little miss, is Crispin," he says. "I'm a pelican."

Bianca gestures towards herself cordially. "My name is Bianca, and this is my husband, and my partner, Bernard."

"Good to meet you both," answers Crispin.

"The pleasure is ours, Mr. Crispin," says Bianca.

Bernard marches up to Crispin, looking the big bird in the eye. "Now, Crispin, do you think you could give us a ride somewhere? We are on a mission from the RAS, and need to get to Miles Beach, Indiana."

Crispin's face lit up. "Ah, yes. I know the RAS. And, Miles Beach you say? Hmm…I may have frequented that town in my time. It may take me some time to recollect, but—"

"So, you can take us there?" Bernard clarifies.

"If you may help strap your seats to my back," answers Crispin, "then I will be most delighted to escort you both to Miles Beach—you can explain the details of your journey on the way!"

…

It takes some minutes for Bernard and Bianca to strap the standard sardine can to Crispin's back, and load their luggage, but they manage. Crispin has found an extra pair of aviator goggles and cap, and attaches them to his head, as Bernard and Bianca climb into the back of the can, pulling on the rolling lid to keep themselves fastened in.

At last, Crispin walks out through the cabin door, shaking out his wings, and making for the runway extending to the edge of the building.

"Ready back there?" Crispin inquires, glancing behind him.

Bianca nods her head, readjusting her hat and scarf, as Bernard straps himself further into his seat.

Crispin turns back ahead of him, starting off down the runway with the edge of the building approaching quicker than Bernard wants to expect. "Then we're off!"


End file.
